Agricultural News

American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall today applauded Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt for rejecting a petition that would have eliminated the use of chlorpyrifos in agriculture.

“Farmers nationwide depend on chlorpyrifos in managing their crops,” Duvall said. “It is widely and safely used for a wide range of crops, including alfalfa, citrus, vegetables, soybeans, almonds and others. It also protects hundreds of thousands of acres of grass seed production, where it controls aphids, cutworms and other pests. As USDA has noted, chlorpyrifos has been used as a part of environmentally friendly IPM (integrated pest management) programs for nearly 50 years.”

Duvall noted that the chemical is still subject to registration review and any concerns about its safe use can be addressed in that process.

AFBF earlier filed comments with EPA expressing concern over the agency’s approach. The agency had apparently relied on epidemiological studies even though researchers had failed to share raw data with the agency. EPA’s own Scientific Advisory Panel, as well as USDA, had expressed caution about how the agency used the epidemiological study.